How can authors identify their most successful marketing paths?

Five strategies to help you figure out what's working.

Last month, I wrote about the 80/20 rule—the concept that 80 percent of our effort ends up fueling just twenty percent of our marketing strategy. I received a great reader question from that article: how can authors identify what their most successful marketing strategy is? In other words: how can you tell what your Top 20 really is?

Determining your most effective marketing strategies can significantly impact your success. Here are several approaches to help authors identify their best marketing paths:

1. Analyze Sales Data

Authors can start by examining sales data to identify patterns and trends. Understanding which marketing efforts coincide with increases in sales can provide valuable insights.

• Track Sales Metrics: Use tools like Amazon KDP, BookScan, or other sales tracking services to gather data.

• Unique URLs: Use referral codes or specific, unique URLs to track traffic from various promotions or campaigns. If you aren’t sure what this is, there is a good post about it here.

• Compare Sales Against Campaigns: Align sales spikes with specific marketing campaigns (such as sales promotions). If an abnormal spike in sales happened during a window when your book had a price discount or just after you appeared on a major media outlet, you can safely presume the sales came from those efforts, even if you don’t have definitive proof.

2. Utilize Social Media Analytics

Social media platforms offer detailed analytics that can help authors understand the engagement and reach of their content.

• Engagement Rates: Analyze likes, shares, comments, and interactions on posts.

• Audience Demographics: Understand who is engaging with content to tailor future marketing efforts.

3. Gather Reader Feedback

Want to know how your readers found you or what about your books and content they most resonate with? Just ask them!

• Surveys and Polls: Use tools like Google Forms or SurveyMonkey to gather structured feedback.

• Reviews and Comments: Monitor reviews on platforms like Goodreads, Amazon or social media comments for insights on what your readers are already saying.

4. Experiment with Different Marketing Channels

Authors should experiment with various marketing channels to determine which ones yield the best results.

• Email Marketing: Build a mailing list and track open and click-through rates.

• Collaborations and Partnerships: Partner with other authors or influencers to expand reach.

5. Use A/B Testing

If you are serious about looking at your marketing from a data perspective, and are ready to get into the weeds a little more, consider running some A/B tests to figure out your most successful marketing paths.

A/B Testing is the concept of running two different versions of the same marketing content to alternate segments of your audience. Then you compare which one gets more engagement or interest—version A or version B?

You can test things like:

• Different subject lines for your newsletter

• Images on your website

• Call-to-action words or font size

• Different versions of your book cover

A helpful video tutorial that teaches A/B testing can be found here.

I hope this helps guide you as you research what is working best for your audience! Any questions? Leave me a comment!